Eyes and ears.
Everywhere.
Celindria was an empire unto herself, and she knew everything.
We are Eternal.
No one can best us.
Soon we will feel everything.
The display at the Reipon bazaar nearly vomited from all of her toys. Nox and Rayne holding hands, leaning into each other, and buying novelties together, did nothing to remove the sour taste from Celindria’s mouth.
Disgust.
The last time she’d felt this emotion so viscerally was after Celindria had awakened from her night of dispassionate sex with Remorse. She’d scrubbed until her skin bled—Until she saw bone. That’s how she felt now.
Revulsion fueled her work in Paradise. Celindria and Pax had successfully isolated the vaccine in the blood samples she’d taken before Enki was destroyed. Tameka and her Shadow team had rushed into Celindria’s lab, and the latter took advantage of their captivity for her own research.
True, the vaccines at the time were a complete surprise and had prevented Celindria from stealing their volition, but now…
“Excellent work, little brother.”
Pax beamed, not fully understanding the key he’d handed her to their souls. He said, “You’ll bring them back here and make them see, right, sister? Make them appreciate your Paradise, so they won’t resist this time?”
Celindria forced a reassuring smile. “Of course. I will do everything I can.”
It wasn’t a lie. All she wanted was to show them the light, but unlike Pax, Celindria knew they would rather stay in the dark. With this breakthrough, she could mutate the virus and administer it as easily as she’d taken Korac’s blood—
A sudden whir made them both spin toward the DNA extraction instrument.
Nox.
Is it time?
Will he recognize us?
How should we greet him?
Sex immediately upon his revival would provide the only cure to Celindria’s current state.
“Go on, Pax. Tell me if it’s ready.”
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He smiled excitedly before rushing to the machine. After Pax scanned it, he beamed.
Celindria practically floated to the instrument, retrieved the sample of Korac’s DNA, and loaded the patch. This was it. This would wake her Nox.
Upon contact with her creation’s skin, the patch and all its nanites would absorb into Nox and infuse him with the final upgrade. For the first time in a long time, Celindria felt something in her chest. A faint trace of warmth. It brought tears to her eyes.
“Sister?”
When she pulled Pax in for a hug, this time it felt tangible and right. Since he was born, Celindria had waited to say this and finally mean it. “I love you.”
If only she could tell Hope…
But the glimpse of joy was gone as fast as it came.
Pax squeezed, and Celindria felt nothing. When he said, “I love you, too,” it rang empty inside, made all the worse because she’d felt it only a moment ago.
“Let’s wake him.”
The walk down the considerable breadth of the lab was filled with Celindria’s voices. The chorus of a billion she could only ignore to stay sane. They sang of this moment.
He will love us.
Then we will feel love.
It’s all coming together.
As before, Nox still faced out over the empire. Celindria wanted him to see her success in his first moment to better understand her aims.
Pax stayed behind, saying, “Go to him. I’ll be right here.”
She shot him a fake smile before going to Nox’s side. There, Celindria reached up, kissed his cheek, and then she took his hand.
The patch absorbed into his palm within a heartbeat, and the statue beside Celindria grew warm. Hot, even. She let go of his hand or lest it burn. Now would be the time to feel concern.
Cobalt flushed Celindria’s creation, and citron flickered beneath Nox’s skin. The form convulsed and sputtered. Started. Stopped. Sputtered again.
Celindria stepped back and narrowed her gaze.
Pax called, “Should that happen?”
It was an excellent question, and as soon as Celindria formed the thought, everything stopped. Nox was still and breathing normally.
With a glance at her brother, Celindria took a tentative step toward her soon-to-be lover. Then another. When Nox remained calm, she went to him and checked his vitals. All were within normal range. She went to his front and gazed up at him.
“Nox? Can you hear me?”
Black eyes opened and looked down at Celindria. She supposed if she possessed a normal range of emotions, a thrill would shoot through her. Instead, she kept examining him, waiting.
Wetting her lips, Celindria tried again, “Nox, do you recognize me?”
Pax leaned around Nox so she could see him. He asked a question with eyes just like their father’s.
Nox raised a hand so abruptly, Celindria’s body flinched out of reflex, but relaxed as it caressed her face.
He recognizes us!
We’ve done it!
Yes. What a successful abomination we’ve made—
Both hands went around Celindria’s neck and squeezed before she could react. Black velvet immediately darkened her vision, and she fell to her knees.
“No!” Pax.
With a collapsed trachea, Celindria couldn’t scream or tell Pax to stay back. To leave Nox alone. She would fix it—
Squeeze.
He would tear into her throat and rip it out at this rate. Her repair systems kept trying, but his hands kept squeezing.
Celindria went blind, and her nerve endings tingled. Two more seconds, and this would be how it ends—
Air punched into her lungs, and she could suddenly see again.
The vengeful sparkle dimmed in Nox’s eyes.
No.
His grip loosened, and after another moment, Nox collapsed.
No!
While Celindria’s hard and soft tissue repair systems recovered her throat, she checked Nox’s vitals. His pallor was awful, dull and lifeless—Drained.
Panic.
Celindria was experiencing panic as she looked up from her dead lover to her powerful little brother and shrieked, “Pax, what have you done?!”
“I saved you.”
Kill Pax.
No, don’t. We love him.
What is Paradise without Nox?
What are we without him?